I was 'the new Ryan Giggs' and joined Liverpool from Man Utd - now I make £15m a year
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Despite winning the FA Youth Cup in 2003, his career didn't take off in Manchester and he was released in 2005 without ever making an appearance for the senior team.READ MORE: I didn't agree with how I was treated at Liverpool after holding transfer talks with Xabi AlonsoREAD MORE: Liverpool could force Man Utd into huge decision as £66m reality clear amid Ruben Amorim deadlineIn an unusual move, the then-19 year old joined arch-rivals Liverpool shortly after leaving United, becoming the first player since the 1960s to make a direct move from Old Trafford to Anfield. After a year of playing reserve football, he moved to Scunthorpe in 2006 for a shot at first-team action, reports Wales Online.Disaster struck just weeks after he dropped down the leagues, as he suffered a serious injury during pre-season, dislocating his ankle, fracturing a bone and severely damaging ligaments.Despite multiple operations and being assured he'd be back on the pitch within six months, the devastating injury left him with a limp that persisted for three years and continues to trouble him to this day.Battling through with the limp, Calliste tried desperately to resurrect his career through trials at Cambridge City, West London Saracens, Shrewsbury, Newport, Lincoln and Wycombe, as well as Bulgarian side Levski Sofia.But the brutal truth eventually dawned on him, forcing him to walk away from football permanently."The injury I had, which I still have trouble with today, is just insane," he told WalesOnline in 2021, laying bare the moment that destroyed his football career."I had a limp for about three years that never went.
When I was trying to regain my career, I couldn't because I had a limp. I could score 20 goals in a game, but I had a limp, it doesn't look like I'm fit, so I do a fitness test and I'm not going to pass it."Looking back on Ferguson telling him he'd be leaving the club due to a restructuring of their youth system, Calliste remembered: "It was a matter of 'look, it's just bad timing, there's too many people in front of you at the moment, he doesn't want to hold me back and make false promises, I guess'.
There's no hard feelings there, it's all good, they're a great club, and I'm still a fan of the club."After hanging up his boots, Calliste made a remarkably successful switch into business, launching Global Watches in 2013. There's a lot of watch dealers out there now, but I don't really see it as competition personally.